Payne admitted it was a good move for him personally but was sad at the prospect of leaving Townsville.

"It's very exciting, I'm looking forward to the next two years in Newcastle, but I'm going to miss the Fury," the 20-year old told the Townsville Bulletin.

"I never would have got the security of two seasons without the Fury ... if I hadn't come here, I wouldn't have got noticed by Newcastle.

"I've made some good friends here so I'll be sad to leave.

"The Newcastle deal, I just couldn't knock that back," he added.

"I would have loved to have stayed at the Fury, but not knowing what is going on with the club, you can't sit around and wait for too long. I've been holding off to see how the club's going but I couldn't wait around much longer.

"Everybody who gets offered a contract is going to take it."

Both players will remain with the club until the end of the season before moving onto their new homes.